ISIS beheads 21 Egyptians; Egypt retaliates with airstrikes

Cairo, Egypt – The Islamic State released a video showing the beheadings of 21 Egyptian Christians. The Egyptians were members of the Coptic Church.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt stated that his nation would retaliate. Although Islam is the most prevalent religion in Egypt and the freedom of religion is threatened in the nation, it is relatively better than neighboring nations. The Egyptian government has historically protected religious minorities from outside attacks, especially the Coptic Christians.

The ISIS militants are reported to be in Libya. Tensions along the Egyptian-Libya border have been on the rise. Egypt is in the midst of its own insurgency and the Islamic State militants have made overtures towards allying with the insurgents. This incident could spark Egypt to join the coalition against the Islamic State.